State of XM? - Page 3

Guilty · 02-15-2016, 09:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ambasah

I love this company. I also love the fact that most can be had for marginally more than retail now. This will broaden the collector base which is only a good thing.

I do have to scratch my head about the licensing though. Why is it that Prime1 is able to sell their Marvel and DC stuff worldwide but XM is not? I wonder if it is a $ thing or something more insidious...

$$$$

Buzzie · 02-15-2016, 10:34 AM

Imagine how fast they would sell out being worldwide officially. Ordering would be no fun at all...

Thor57 · 02-15-2016, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loricstone

Please enlighten me. AFAIK...there is only one female statue of a demand for an alternate regular portrait. You make it seem like XM has made 10 female statues already.

Like Demona said...its not the sculpt that is the issue...its more the paint application. I agree with her.

I'll hit this one up.

The one place Sideshow still beats XM is initial female head sculpts. The recent Sideshow Carol Danvers head is light years ahead of the XM head. I prefer the head sculpt for the new Phoenix from SS too. I really respect the Pereira's and even have a few commissions done by them. But Goregroup and guys like Harbottle are simply better at female sculpts. I think it's a culture based thing. While not all their females are anime like, they have very sharp features which is a staple of Asian art.

Basically, I much prefer XM due to their base complexity, and I think their male sculpts have a great muscularity and comic look on the portraits. Mr. Sosa's Thor and Pereira's Black Bolt looked like they jumped right off the comic pages. But there is improvements to be made, and much to XM's credit, they take that criticism in stride and make efforts to improve. The She-Hulk revisit is an example of that.

As for the topic at hand, XM will be fine. They make a quality, desirable product. They are hitting up characters long left ignored, which is a huge draw. Is there any doubt had they not had the X-Men license yanked we'd be seeing niche characters like Shatterstar, Cannonball, etc. etc.

Spidey976 · 02-15-2016, 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ambasah

I love this company. I also love the fact that most can be had for marginally more than retail now. This will broaden the collector base which is only a good thing.

I do have to scratch my head about the licensing though. Why is it that Prime1 is able to sell their Marvel and DC stuff worldwide but XM is not? I wonder if it is a $ thing or something more insidious...

I am guessing, but there were rumours about 2 years ago that SSC was looking for another company to work on their 1/2 SC statue lines, otherwise known as their Legendary Scale line. They had done a Catwoman and were working on a Joker as well. Then all of a sudden both disappeared, and the Prime 1 DC statues started to surface. From that I am speculating that Prime 1 and SSC have come to some kind of agreement where SSC sold or leased out parts of their licenses in return for the distribution rights. In a very real way SSC wins coming and going. Now could that happen with XM?? I think that at one time it might have been possible, but I think that there is just to much that has gone down over the last few years to see that happen.

loricstone · 02-15-2016, 06:35 PM

Damn Spidey...where the heck have you been? Haven't seen you in a month of Sundays.

nexus · 02-15-2016, 07:11 PM

Like any company XM was the "new flashy" when it came on the scene -- cool, highly detailed designs, great character mix, limited ES and solid QC. Now we are what, 3 year in. Things are bound to change as the rest of the market is catching up. I have 6 XM statues and 5 more on preorder. Also planning to get Black Panther and possibly Ghost Rider and Moon Knight. So XM is definitely a favorite company. I do think things are cooling a bit for three primary reasons.
1. Cost -- In NA and Europe, the shipping costs push the envelope on these purchases. I always have to factor in the extra $200-$300 in shipping, so the lack of a global license will always be a factor.
2. Competition -- From Sideshow (resurgent), Prime 1 (the new guys plus a global license) and Customs (fan favorite characters and comparable sculpts).
3. Flipper Fatigue -- lower margins means fewer flippers and less hype. That's good for true collector buyers but it does impact brand and value perception.

Since I focus on getting what I like regardless of company, as opposed to buying collectibles that I think will go up in the market, it's not a huge deal to me. That said, I don't think anyone will say they do not want their collectibles to increase in value and certainly with XM the reality is that you will pay a premium from the get-go. It will be interesting to see what happens with Prime 1 pricing for 1:4 statues. I am definitely looking forward to seeing what else is coming from XM down the pipeline. It's too bad the X-Men battle dio got cancelled although in retrospect it would have cost a fortune. These days I'd probably rather see something like that in 1:10 or even 1:12 scale, especially considering how detailed smaller sculpts can now be made. Also, while I know XM sold themselves on not making variants, I personally think it was a mistake. I would have certainly picked up a Dark Phoenix or White Phoenix from them as opposed to buying an extra that I'd have to then have repainted in the secondary. Would also pick up a Red She Hulk and a blue flame Ghost-Rider.

Big Hulk · 02-15-2016, 09:07 PM

I'll probably get raked over the coals for this but in my opinion XM is only popular because they all feel like exclusives since us in the US can't get them easily. I guarantee you most people buy them for long term investments even if they will never say that. I honestly don't think most of their statues are that impressive but I don't have on in hand.

Cougrcrumby · 02-15-2016, 09:25 PM

I have three of the, n my home but my contact dried up. I'd surely like to get ahold of a MoonKnight...but have no way of securing him anymore. Looking forward to darkness where I can actually pick him up living I the states.

azurepred · 02-15-2016, 10:35 PM

US buyers can get a pretty good 1/3 scale piece from Prime compared to a 1/4 from XM. I think it's just simply too much for most to pay that price for the lesser characters, not to mention you can get more for your money elsewhere. I don't think the majority of XM buyers only collect Marvel.

Spidey976 · 02-15-2016, 11:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loricstone

Damn Spidey...where the heck have you been? Haven't seen you in a month of Sundays.

Lol loric I am still around, but I tend not to have time to post as much as I use to. I have been producing my own stuff instead. I have several custom head projects on the go as we speak, plus at least two full body sculpts I have been working on. I also tend to chat with a lot of different producers and sculptors on FB more often as they can help me better the craft. This place use to have more producer involvement then it does now, and that was a big draw for me. Thanks for asking m8.